Alta-LA: First Bilingual Event

Three Latinas—performance poet, writer, and artist Vibiana Aparicio-Chamberlin; poet, author, curator, and columnist for Pasadena SGV Journal, Gerda Govine; and author, poet, editor, and writing consultant, Thelma T. Reyna will read their poetry in Spanish and English at Altadena Library on Thursday, October 17 at 7:00 p.m. in the Library Community Room.

This event is the second of the Alta-L.A. 3rd Thursday Poetry Series hosted by Linda Dove, the library’s Poet Laureate. Open mic readers may perform their poems in either Spanish or English.

Hometown Pasadena would like to thank Gerda, Linda, and Vibiana for their contributions to our poetry and short fiction category “Write Here,” and consequently, continuing our education, understanding, and enjoyment of the lyrical and potent language of poetry.

Gerda’s poems Snapshot and Mountain Glory reflect a life lived in the foothills, while Mothers Who Carry Their Own Water is an untethered, raw, emotional reaction to a parent’s worst fear.

Linda Dove’s After Imagingis also powerful and a personal inspection and verdict: “In the door of my head/lights/left burning where I crave/the doused dark.”

Vibiana Aparicio-Chamberlin is a painter and printmaker who’s involved with the Pasadena Writing Project and their Memoir Writing Workshop. She shared some of her memoir Impossible with our readers, as well as a work of her mother Isabel Luna.

Thelma T. Reyna is a national award-winning author of two books: The Heavens Weep for Us and Other Stories (2009) and Breath & Bone (2011).

1 Response for “Alta-LA: First Bilingual Event”

This literary event went very well! I enjoyed sharing the stage with my fellow poets, Vibiana and Gerda. The audience was attentive, totally engaged, and wondefully responsive. Kudos to Altadena Poet Laureate Linda Dove, and to Altadena Head Librarian Pauli Dutton for their wonderful work in coordinating this special event. I was honored and delighted to be part of it!